Top 20 Most Important TV Shows in History
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- čas přidán 13. 06. 2024
- After seven decades, television has come a long way! Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the the most influential and groundbreaking television programs throughout history. Our countdown includes shows “Seinfeld”, “Saturday Night Live”, “All in the Family” and more! Which TV show do you think has been the most influential? Let us know in the comments below!
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Which TV show do you think has been the most influential? Let us know in the comments below!
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Love It WatchMojo.
If it wasn’t for “Living Single”, “Friends” would have never existed. Period. ✊🏽✊🏽✊🏽✊🏽✊🏽
I’m glad _Game of Thrones,_ _Seinfeld,_ and _Breaking Bad_ made the second half of the list. I loved GOT from start to finish.
Star Trek should have a mention, it spawned a genre and a 60 year franchise
Star Trek and Twin Peaks send their regards
Star Trek' made TV history when it aired an episode where Captain Kirk and Lieutenant Uhura kissed on screen. The moment is widely regarded as one of American TV's first interracial kisses.
Star Trek did a lot and I’m shocked it’s not on the list.
common Watchmojo L
Without Star Trek there would have been no X-files. Like they really messed up their priorities here.
@@mwater_moon2865 Hum X Files is the legacy of The Twilight Zone and Doctor Who. Star Trek not so much
Why isn't Mister Rogers' Neighborhood on this list? That should be, without doubt, a very important TV show. As a matter of fact, it definitely is.
Not a bad list, but how is Star Trek not on this? It spun off 10 more tv shows and over a dozen movies. Not to mention the impact it had on pop culture, real-world science, science fiction genre, and our actual lexicon. That's a really bad miss. Even George Lucas said that there likely wouldn't be Star Wars without Star Trek.
Doctor Who is way more influential than Star Trek and has been around longer. It's listed in the Guinness Book as the most successful franchise in the world. But I'm guessing you're American so that's the only world you know.
No Twin Peaks anywhere is ludicrous. It is THE milestone for what a TV series is perceived to be today. Before the TV "renaissance" of the 2000's with shows like Sopranos and The Wire, it was the one show that created the foundation, with the creators of these very shows citing TP as an influence (yes, creator of Sopranos too). It shaped how TV series would be defined by both creators and audiences, and influenced tons of other media all over the world as well.
One of the most influential TV shows I grew up with was Arthur. It was he longest running animated children's show in history, and it effectively tackled contemporary issues thought to be too mature for kids.
I think I'd add Buffy the Vampire Slayer to the list. It managed to combine sci-fi, fantasy, horror, comedy, and teen drama into one VERY satisfying package. It also had many really ambitious episodes, including a musical one that I ACTUALLY liked., (not normally my thing) and an episode with almost no dialogue. Plus it inspired several shows like it in the early 2000's.
No Looney Tunes on Saturday mornings is just one of the many things wrong with this world.
For modern shows, Game of Thrones really upped the budget for what a TV show could achieve. It's a shame they sabotaged the ending.
Had it finished on "Battle of The Bastards", it would've surpassed Breaking Bad as my personal GOAT.
Wow. The disrespect for Star Trek is absurd.
It's crap
I thought it would be number one
I didn't even think about that. I'll give you that one. Honestly, I think maybe it should had been in place of GoT then rearranged from there
Even as someone who's much more of a TNG fan, I can't deny that leaving out the original series is a crime!
Star Trek knows what it did.
Star Trek should definitely be on the list for revoltionizing the Sci-fi genre.
DALLAS belongs on this list as one of the first prime time soap operas. There is no Tony Soprano without JR Ewing. Also, it popularized the use of the cliffhanger.
MASH should be number 1 for the sole reason that it still has the most watched viewers for any tv show with the finale.
HUGE omission in Star Trek; it had a huge influence.
Sorry, I love Star Trek but what did it revolutionise? It's ideas we're relatively common place.
First interracial kiss? A British show, 4 years earlier. Storylines on race or gender? Doctor Who touched base on both before Star Trek aired.
Heck, the idea of teleportation as a cost saving way to transport main characters was a core idea of Doctor Who 3 years earlier - the TARDIS essentially teleports directly to its destination every time.
I've never watched Dallas, but I thought of that one as well. The JR story is one I've heard about many times for decades.
Well played with Dallas. Without this Heel you don't get the Sopranos or the Wire or a dozen others.
Star Trek? Brady Bunch? Gilligan's Island? Happy Days? Some pretty influential stuff in there.
I'd put the office on here over friends. It did more to revolutionize sitcoms. A moving single camera, no laugh track, talking heads. It influenced tons of popular sitcoms that came after it.
The fact that Twin Peaks didn’t even make the list is absurd. The amount of TV creators and critics that point to Twin Peaks as not only a masterwork but also a huge turning point and influence in the format is countless.
I agree
Twin Peaks was the show that was PROOF that television didn't have to be second to movies anymore.
While I do agree that the show broke new ground as far as how cinematic TV could be; you didn't see many other shows trying to do "the David Lynch thing." Which imo, is good because he's never made anything but visually pleasing NONSENSE!
Ummmmm...Star Trek Not on the list...WTF...someone really dropped the ball there.
I remember my mom banned the mention of "Lost" in the house. She was really pissed off by the series finale. To me though, "House" was the second best important medical show right behind "ER."
Glad I stopped watching Lost (the plot) in season 2.....
Your mother is crazy
Because of "Lost" I do not engage in watching multi-seasonal TV Series no matter how binge-worthy they might be. With the sole exception of "Mad Men".
@@Asellus715 No, she was just mad. She got over though.
Don't care what anyone says, Buffy and Star Trek should be on this list for what they did to the genres of Supernatural and Science Fiction.
No Star Trek? No 60 Minutes? No talk shows?
NoTwin Peaks, none of over half the list would exist without it/all their creators will even tell ya so. Also, Dick the Dick Van Dyke show was a major inspiration for Jerry Seinfeld in terms to approaching his character. Still a solid list overall…
Not including Star Trek on your list is most illogical!
the fuck OG Star Trek isn't on the list for?
also missing The Flintstones , and Married... with Children.
Three words: Hill Street Blues. Without which, there never would've been The Sopranos, Law & Order, NYPD Blue, NCIS, Law & Order: SVU, etc.
No Twin Peaks is a shame.
"Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood". Fred Rogers actually saved public television. He went and spoke straight to Congress. ✌️
Thank you for adding Doctor Who to this list. Bloody brilliant it is
pointless
@@alexandramyers8031 however do you work that out? It did most sci-fi TV things before other shows, it's multi record breaking, hell: X-Men Days of Future Past (and by extension Terminator) wouldn't exist at all without it (the comic was directly based upon a Doctor Who serial.)
Star Trek!😌
MASH and Golden Girls and Star Trek were the jam. Friends and Seinfeld as well
Lost some how made this list but Twin Peaks north Star Trek did?
Monty Python, one of the star treks, Bob Ross, just to name a few that should be on the list
Game of Thrones broke every rule in storytelling...until the end where it then followed every damn cliche. What a sad send off for an ALMOST perfect show
I still weep about that
Orange is the New Black, Queer as Folk, Malcolm in the Middle, Married with Children and Star Trek were all groundbreaking for bringing subjects to the masses with characters not portrayed on Screen before.
Its always sunny deserves to be here, because it literally pushes new limits and adresses real world problems, and maybe Community, because its simply unique and specially in the way shows can go today, you never know what to expect.
No Honeymooners?? That show defined the sitcom
Where's Star Trek? Law & Order? 60 Minutes? Twilight Zone and All in the Family should have been in the top 5. MASH #1.
To me The Wonder Years is important cuz of the narration and how it was funny/sad in the same episode. Plus how well they represented the past including real events in the world.
Twin Peaks is the inspiration for almost any show that brings movie-esque drama production to a tv series from its unique storytelling and blending so many genres along with a stellar cast. It was really before its time, and therefore got the bulk of making the viewer public come to expect something more from a tv show (or in TPs case, if ever to know what to expect).
This show got a really young me sneak up to watch the show on its late night airing (in Sweden) because I knew it would be the talk in school the day after. It was captivating and scary, and my mother was right to tell me I’d get nightmares, but I couldn’t stay away nonetheless.
And for them to creating the follow-up series 25 years later to a line said in the original series is just masterful to perfection.
So it’s sorely missed on this list, let alone in the top 5.
I'm shocked you never included Songs of Praise on your list.
Star Trek
Star Trek TOS should have been number one
'Star Trek' TV TOS 📺 Show 🤔 Maybe Not 🚫#1. But At Least An Honorable Mention! 'WatchMojo' Really Screwed Up 🥺😢 On This List.
Usually 'WatchMojo' Is Spot On. But , Not 🚫 This Time.
Disappointed.,🥺😢😞
No Fresh Prince, Martin, Living Single or Cosby show is pretty telling
One TV show that you missed not only influenced television and movies but changed our very attention span. "Miami Vice" debuted in 1984. It incorporated the editing style of music videos thus creating fast cuts and editing. So many times, you here people talk about movies made prior to this time and the most common problem they have is how slow the pacing is. It was Miami Vice that shifted the pacing to what we are more accustomed to.
Where is Star Trek, ... without this tv series, the cell phone, the tablet, laptop, lcd tv , anti matter.... would not exist, and momentous as the first fiction space captain, Capt Kirk, get to go into real space...
I love the fact that South Park is on this list 😄
should be higher, tbh
Sorry, but #1 is without a doubt, Emergency! So many cities around the country decided to start EMS programs and employ paramedics because of that show. And literally COUNTLESS people went into the fire service and EMS because of Johnny and Roy. The number of lives saved because of this show's influence can never be fully measured.
So true!
Mad Men actually debuted one year before Breaking Bad, shouldn't that get some recognition?
Red Dwarf, Father Ted and of course The Simpsons.
What about The French Chef? It kickstarted a new trope in television, cooking shows.
I think one you guys forgot was Tom and Jerry! Now, that was fun!
I guess Oz is probably the most underrated series of history. It should have been included and also The Wire could be ranked higher.
Hmm, should have been titled 'Top 20 Most Important TV Shows in the USA'.
No Twin Peaks? No The Office (UK)? No Fawlty Towers? For shame!
it's a shame "Buffy: The Vampire Slayer" can't get into this list. The show had its flaws, but it was really influential.
Is it just me, or are half of these comedies? And where's Star Trek?
I'm glad Sesame Street is on the list. But at least put Mister Roger's Neighborhood, Blue's Clues or arthur as an honorable mention.
Honeymooners?
SPONGEBOB IS NOT EVEN AN HONORABLE MENTION!?!? I’m going on strike
Monty pythons flying circus
Father Ted
Brass Eye
The Royle Family
The Young ones
It’s a sin
Boys From the Blackstuff
Have I got news for you
House of cards (yes originally a British show)
Big Brother (yes originally a British show)
None will be mentioned because they weren’t/aren’t North American 🤢
P.S have you noticed how few people of colour are in these supposedly ‘groundbreaking’ shows 😳🤬
P.S I can’t for the life of me understand why they left out The Cosby Show 😳( that’s sarcasm )
Same with all their lists, They should just say "In in the US" & not bother adding the 1 British one.
Also, You forgot Only Fools & Horses?
Game of Thrones, X-Files, The Simpsons, Charmed & Mr Bean are my top TV shows…
Honorable mention is Full House I mean they handle more issues than the other shows that on the same time whether they were big or small, like a couple of examples doing mother or father like activities or projects, even though one of the parents is no longer in their lives, from how to deal with eating disorders to it’s ok to let go of past even though you may have feelings and have wonderful memories with the person you were with
I hated that show. The kids were rotten and insufferable and the adults were all middle aged flunkies. What I hated most was the inevitable sad or reflective moment near the end of the episode followed by a stupid joke and laughtrack. Predictable every single time. 👎🏽
Hot topic. I agree with your number 1. I watched It in 2020 during covid and i was broken by the end.
So many iconic great show! Perfect! Lost started great but it became slow later. Mom and dad said it. South Park can be extremely rude and disgusting but great,I love Cheers,Friends,totally iconic,Frasier,completely iconic too,Game of Thrones,The Simpsons,Loonely Tunes.The Sompranos is fantastic too. So many great shows! Excellent video😁
I was surprised not to see Mr. Roger's Neighbourhood on here. Maybe just for us Canadians, Mr Dressup. My fav.
Thank you for the update, WatchMojo..!! There were also Knight Rider (1982-1986), V (1984), Airwolf (1984-1986), MacGyver (1985-1992), etc.. For me, the best TV shows were from the 80s. 🤣
definitely missed twin peaks.
No Monty Python?
🏰 "Downton Abbey" (2010-2015)
It did make the most of loving us!
First things first R.I.P/ Uncle Phill. Fresh Prince is iconic. The fact it;s not on here is a crime
I maybe biased since Buffy the Vampire Slayer is my favorite show but then again it has entire college courses dedicated to it and is one of the most academically dissected works in pop-culture (just to make a case for it).. not to mention a young female lead with depth, integirty, power & just general badassery without the sacrifice of her feminine qualities, in an era that was rare(Xena, Scully... are acknowledged).. Buffy is important.
If you put Friends on here, then Living Single should have been higher. Ifykyk 😮
Wasn't Friends just a ripoff of Living Single? Living Single started a year earlier and was far superior.
Also I think The Daily Show deserves to be on this list. One of the first satirical news shows, it inspired many to care about politics.
I've never heard of Living Single. Friends obviously surpassed it.
Your list bad because you missed MY show!!!1!
Seriously - good stuff
Stupid Sopranos finale. Thought the cable went out. Almost had a heart attack.
For the most part I agree with all the shows that are on this list, but the rankings are absolutely jacked
Is it just me, or is this list just literally WatchMojo's top 20 best TV shows ranked the exact same way?
Did you guys just forget about Star Trek? The X-Files and Dr Who are fine, but are you really suggesting they’re more iconic and influential than Star Trek? I was thinking it would be top-3, but not even mentioned?
The Tonight Show should have been on this list.
Why wasn't twin peaks on the list?
An excellent list but a glaring omission is Star Trek. You’ve Got Spunk, Mary sort of liking that. Lou - I hate spunk. So pleased you included MTM
The Sopranos belongs in its spot.
My favorite TV drama of all time, influential in even more ways.
Well over a hundred million people watched the MASH finale.
Yada, yada, yada👍
The Twilight Zone didn't make the Top 10??!?!?!? WHAT!?
one of the most influential ive watched is power rangers...it came out in a time when i was greiving, i lost my grandpa...1993...and our whole family was involved in a car accident minutes after we heard the news..and not to mention....before all the roller skating rinks shut down in the mid 2000s, my dad broke his wrist a week before said car accident....and power rangers came out that week...october 9th 1993....and its been going since....im so happy netflix picked it up on its 30th anniversary...because now...netflix can make it REALLY violent and kill off characters XD
The simpsons had such an impact on my life I will never know where I would be today without it.
Dead. Probably
My Personal Favorites:
1. South Park
2. The X-Files
3. Looney Tunes
4. Twilight Zone
5. Game Of Thrones
6. Doctor Who
7. I Love Lucy
8. The Simpsons
9. Downton Abby
10. Buffy The Vampire Slayer
No Sesame Street?
Where’s Star Trek? Where’s The Honeymooners? Where’s Perry Mason? Not a complete list.
Bubbles, Bogie and Omar were some best tv character's, so complicated yet you rootes for them all the same.
Top 3 are solid picks. Never seen star trek so i can't say wether it belongs on list or not.
The reason I'm a Supernatural fan is cause of The X-Files. Mulder and Scully were the Sam and Dean of my teen years.
Canadian Doctor Who 2005- Fan
I would understand why Family Guy isn’t on the list. (At least it was mentioned in the Simpsons part)
I think I Love Lucy should be #1. They literally invented everything from on air pregnancies, interracial marriage, drama backstage and live studio audience.
Honestly believe Dragonball Z should be on here. How it heavily increased the popularity of anime in America while simultaneously grandfathering the shonen genre cannot be stated enough. It is far from the best but you can't find a boy under 40 who hasn't tried to do a Kamehameha or go super saiyan at least once.
I’m not even a big DBZ fan It definitely should be on the list
Oi WatchMojo where would we even be without Star Trek inspiring Phones and Tablets?!
Should have done a TV Show List and a Cartoon List
Setting aside that this is a ludicrously American-dominated list, there are also some startling omissions:
The West Wing?
Star Trek?
Twin Peaks?
Coronation Street?
Dallas?
The World at War?
Speaking of all in the family and the Jefferson’s y’all should do spin off shows that outgrew their successors
My problem with MOJO os that to their writers, anything before 1990 doesn't exist.
I blame it on having a young staff.
But yes,Star Trek should have been included. As should the Ed Sullivan show, Bonanza or GunSmoke should have been included. The Tonight Show should be included. Today Show, They might have mentioned just in passing The Flintstones and The Jetsons. Father knows best, Wide World of Sports,Days of our Lives, The Gameshows, Deadwood etc
All things that existed before 1990.
Golden Girls, anyone? How did we miss this one?!
How the hell Family guy isnt on this list
Came here from TikTok huh?
Friends and SNL made it, but Living Single and In Living Color didn't...interesting
Not bad...I only seen 9 of these shows.
Missing a few shows to increase list to 30 or 40